Teaching With Documents
How do I use them?
Social Education 67(7), pp. 405-409
© 2003 National Council for the Social Studies
My Reward: Outstanding
Student Projects Based on
Primary Sources
John M. Lawlor, Jr.
There’s a fine collection of term projects sitting nearby demanding attention. It’s
the end of the term and this is my reward. A
few of the projects are pro forma, created
to meet the course requirements with
minimal effort. Most, however, will reveal
some dedicated scholarship and sound
historical technique. There will be enough
in the stack to generate “gee whiz” reactions.
The common denominator of the “gee
whiz” projects is that all deploy fascinating
primary sources. I’m in for a treat.
Past experience with student projects
shapes this attitude. I’ve kept track of them
for more than ten years. Many have become
intertwined within course materials. It’s an
interesting challenge, however, to determine
what motivates student performance and
assess the impact of primary sources on the
quality of their work. This essay attempts to
discern why and how students employ primary sources to strengthen their projects.
My students are freshmen and
sophomores from nearly all curricula
offered at Reading Area Community
College (RACC). They range in age from
seventeen to seventy-one and have a wide
range of interests and experiences. Class
demographics resemble the general demographics of the institution with an increasing enrollment of Latino students. Most
(over 98 percent) are students who plan to
transfer to a four-year college to complete
a bachelor’s degree. No curriculum at
RACC requires history courses, so all of
my students are “volunteers.” The curriculum of the transfer school, however, may
have a history requirement, and students
from other institutions sometimes come
to RACC to complete that requirement.
I try to make the students aware that they
have an opportunity in the survey courses
to meet students who are not like them, and
that as they reach third year and beyond,
their colleagues will be more and more
just like them in the sense of interests and
academics. My course surveys indicate that
the students tend to have a greater interest
in social, ethnic, and cultural issues than in
political and economic ones. This attitude
tends to shift over time.
At the onset of the term, students in my
history courses receive a packet of project
materials. Although all my history courses
have a project requirement, this essay
addresses United States history courses specifically. Within the packet are generic history
project guidelines and options along with
strict citation rules. The first requirements
are that projects must fit within the scope of
the course and be historical in nature. The
project need not be a paper, although many
are. The objective is to encourage creativity.
To stimulate creativity, I discuss with students
an array of previously successful projects created in the specific course. Within two weeks,
students submit proposals.
The proposal consists of topic, purpose, method, and a list of preliminary
sources. I provide each student with a personal, typed response in which I address
the topic and provide guidance on form,
length, and grading criteria. Unusual
projects, which are encouraged, get a bit
more personal attention and students are
required to set up a meeting to discuss
Novemb e r/D e c emb e r 2 0 03
405
deliverables. Examples of atypical projects
that have been accepted include creation of
a museum exhibit of children’s toys, a “how
to” video for firing a Civil War era cannon,
lesson plans by teacher education majors,
audio-video productions, multimedia
presentations, creative writing “simulations,” desktop publishing such as historical society brochures, artwork, web pages,
and the list goes on. One student even
arranged a United Service Organization
show, complete with a big band, within a
grade school World War II night she had
organized. Whenever possible, students
submit a photocopy or other facsimile
duplication of a primary source connected
to the topic along with my written response
or, in the case of unusual projects, they provide the relevant materials during the meeting that discusses the project. Irrespective
of the overall format, all projects require
scholarly research, “paperwork,” and full
documentation. It could be that the personal attention and interest in the project
generates a bit of enthusiasm on the part
of the students to do good work.
During the two weeks that students
are “cooking” their topics and approaches,
a few minutes of each class are devoted to
past projects. Student production is key. It
shows how high the bar is set. Typically,
we explore projects that were published,
selected for the Beacon Competition —an
academic competition for community college students from New York, Pennsylvania,
and Maryland. Additionally, we consider
projects that employed creative methodology or showcased superior use of primary
Document Analysis
The four documents presented here illustrate different
views of the area around the Penn St. Bridge in Reading,
Pennsylvania. Teachers can use them (or comparable
documents from their own localities) to illustrate changing
urban ecology, and to teach students to think about land
use over a period of time in which historical changes have
taken place.
The documents enable students to compare the same
scene from different perspectives. The engineering drawing in the first document portrays the same location as the
artist’s rendering that comprises the third document. It is
fascinating to compare the different perspectives of the
engineer and the artist. Looking at all four scenes, students
can identify changes over time, record information about
competing pressures for the use of land, and analyze changes
and their impact.
The most important technological change affecting the
area portrayed in the documents in the nineteenth century
was brought by the railroad, which competed here and elsewhere with the canal as a means of transportation. (Canal
workers who saw their livelihoods threatened by the railroads periodically burned down wooden railroad bridges,
which resulted in the development of iron bridges, the first
of which was recently displayed in the Museum of American
History at the Smithsonian.) The second document shows
railroad properties south of the Penn Street Bridge. By the
time of the Interstate Commerce Commission survey in 1917,
most of the canal land holdings in the area, such as dry docks,
had been converted to railroad yards.
Flooding was also a threat, as the fourth document indicates. In the 1850s, a flood swept away the Penn St. Bridge.
Local lore has it that the bridge was stopped at Douglassville,
Pennsylvania, about 12 miles south, and used to replace
the Douglassville Bridge, which had also been swept away.
The damage from floods increased as industry and housing
developed along the river.
Today, Reading Area Community College occupies
the land shown in the documents, yet a single train track
sporadically moves freight through the center of the
campus. Nothing remains of the canal at Front and Penn
Streets, except for more than 1100 documents in the college library.
S o c i a l E d u c at i o n
406
Document 1
This map of a lock, dry dock, towpath and
general area around the Penn St. Bridge in
Reading was a Schuylkill Navigation
Company plan. The surveyor is unknown.
The drawing is dated February 8, 1911.
The land is now adjacent to Reading
Area Community College. Map 8-107,
Schuylkill Navigation Collection, Reading
Area Community College.
http://www.racc.edu/Library/canal/
index.html
Document 2
This undated plan shows railroad properties at Franklin Street Guard Lock,
approximately 200 yards south of the
Penn St. Bridge. The development of rail
as a means of transportation resulted in two
railroads, the Pennsylvania Railroad and
the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad,
converging in the area shown on the canal
map. Map 8-S109, Schuylkill Navigation
Collection, Reading Area Community
College.
http://www.racc.edu/Library/canal/
index.html
Document 3
This is a view of Schuylkill Canal northward from Penn Street Bridge by J. Heyl
Raser in 1862. It is easy to muse about the
thoughts of the individual as he gazes out
on the river. The original is on display at
the Historical Society of Berks County,
Reading, Pa. Digital version by the author.
The photograph is a section of a larger
work of art.
Document 4
This is a photograph of the Penn Street
Bridge at Reading, Pa., 1855, which is in the
Pennsylvania State Archives in Harrisburg.
It shows the Schuylkill River in flood, with
the Penn St. Bridge in danger. MG-432.
Rothermel Collection of Covered Bridges.
Re-photographed by the author.
sources. Finally, we preview studentdeveloped materials that have been incorporated into the course content. I do get a
bit animated because it’s impossible not to
get enthused about quality. If students get
the impression that what they are doing in
their projects is important, that’s exactly
the intended message. If they sense my
personal interest in the outcomes of their
work, they are absolutely correct.
Once the proposals are returned, students are encouraged to get support at any
point in the process from research to final
production. Depending upon how “off the
wall” (creative) the project is, a weekly update
by email, phone, and/or conversation before
or after class is required. This is done to
prevent any unhappy surprises at the end of
the term. In a way, this follows the approach
of W. Edwards Deming to manufacturing,
which emphasized the need to build quality into products rather than inspect defects
out of them. In teaching, this means working
with the students on the process of preparing
their projects to insure good quality rather
than “red inking” less than satisfactory
results. Admittedly, red ink is still needed,
but it seems to be much less needed than
when I started teaching. The better results
could also be due to better preparation of the
students or factors not directly connected to
their final projects.
As the course proceeds, students gain
exposure to a vast array of primary sources
that enrich or deepen course content and
tease creativity. The National Archives’
“Primarily Teaching” workshop I attended
in 1992 reconfirmed a personal belief in
the value and role of primary sources for
history education. The in-class applications of primary sources are quite variable.
They range from presentation style displays
of graphics such as cartoons, photographs,
advertisements, and artwork, audio clips
of music and speeches, to films and film
clips. A very large collection of text-based
primary sources is also considered in group
discussion depending upon the course
and the size of the class. Many of the
sources were retrieved, re-photographed,
photocopied, scanned or dubbed at the
National Archives, the Pennsylvania State
Archives, or local history societies. There
are general history sources such as a handNovemb e r/D e c emb e r 2 0 03
407
written parole by President Lincoln for a
Confederate prisoner of war to visit his
dying father. There are sources that recount
local experiences during national events
such as war, development and growth of
industry and transportation, social issues
such as the Underground Railroad, and, of
course, political events such as campaigns
and elections. There’s also an increasing
emphasis on local lifestyles, housing,
education, businesses, art and artifacts,
and the environment. An example of local
art history is a fascinating needlepoint that
was created by an eleven-year-old girl
in Kutztown, Pennsylvania, in the 1830s.
The needlepoint captures her worldview
in exquisite detail, with school and church
playing prominent roles. All of the above
are capable of generating remarkable
class discussion and some very insightful
responses on tests. Certainly, the effects are
expected to appear in term projects.
The class setting sometimes suggests
the best type of primary source to use.
Sometimes the nature of the primary source
suggests the setting. The film “They Met at
Gettysburg” is best viewed in a theater setting, the National Archives’ online “Archival
Research Catalog (ARC)” is accessible in
a computer lab, whereas some documents
are best analyzed in small study groups.
Media, too, can vary from print to digital.
It appears there are advantages inherent in
each. A “Smart Room” that has advanced
AV with computer access and display but is
sized appropriately to facilitate small group
discussion is my first choice. My students,
however, are accustomed to migrating to
alternative facilities. Sometimes the best
classroom is the outdoors (e.g., visits to
canal ruins, cemeteries, or historic sites).
Every now and then my students and I take
a field trip to the National Archives or some
other significant depository. Indeed, one
class met with the members of the “Civil
War Conservation Corps” at the National
Archives and another met with the “Old
Military” curator at the Smithsonian. At
the very least, we’ve had lots of fun traveling
and at the very best we’ve had remarkable
educational experiences.
As evident above, classroom experiences with primary sources can be quite
varied. In the age of IDEA, a law that
requires alternative approaches to content
to address varied student learning needs,
primary sources facilitate application of
Universal Curriculum Design (UCD)
principles. Perhaps the best example of
this is a recent project executed by a student
who is blind. His project was to evaluate
the effect of audio primary sources on an
understanding of history. Stimulated by
the National Sound Registry project at the
Library of Congress, the student developed
a collection of sounds in history using standard audio sources such as speeches and
music, web-based audio files, and some
creative ideas based upon his own audio
work as a “ham” radio operator. His ideas
focused on “Sounds of an Era,” the premise
being that certain sounds connect in time
as part of the general public’s experience. A
steam locomotive whistle is a good example.
His project continues even though the term
is long over, and he has some excellent contributions to make.
Topically, the connection of local to
national events through primary sources
seems to be the most effective application.
These can be used to shock, bewilder,
amuse, or provoke the students. The key
thing is that these sources stimulate reactions. They engage. This is true for both
in-class and project activities. A photograph of a local family living in a chicken
coop during the Great Depression, a letter
from a local pastor to FDR concerning
social security, or a daguerreotype of a
Civil War soldier from the area, can connect students to history by connecting the
area where they live to the event. Add the
soldier’s muster and pension records and
he becomes more than a wide-eyed face
in front of a lens.
It’s the local history projects that generate the greatest level of student interest and
have resulted in the best outcomes. Local
projects range from history of the family
or artifacts and documents possessed by
the family, a specific home or building,
neighborhood or community, places of
employment or occupations. These work
because there is usually a personal connection to the topic. Sometimes these are a bit
parochial in nature but usually not. They fit
into a broader historical context.
Family history projects are typically
based on the activities of a relative, such as
the relative’s participation in a major national,
state or local event. Personal documents and
artifacts possessed by the family can generate
remarkable results. One student based her
project around the Columbian Exposition
of 1893 souvenir book that her great grandmother purchased on her visit to the Chicago
celebration. The heart of the project was a
comparison of the treatment of Columbus
in 1893 versus that of 1992-93.
Local disasters can provide powerful
centerpieces for projects. A study of the
Boyertown Opera House fire in which
more than a hundred people died at the
turn of the twentieth century is a case in
point. Natural disasters such as Tropical
Storm Agnes in 1972 affected everyone
in our local area. In this case, students can
apply oral history techniques.
Much less serious but equally compelling is a project that applied desktop publishing techniques to present information
on 1878 Reading Opera House performers. I created a digital collection of cabinet
cards that performers used as souvenirs
for theatergoers. The student created a
parody of Variety magazine that explored
the nature of burlesque and other popular
arts of the time, replete with appropriate
advertisements.
Places where students live or work
can generate very viable and academically
sound projects. Several students researched
their homes, including two who lived in
converted one-room schoolhouses. They
investigated the buildings themselves and
considered the nature of education that
took place in them. Who went to school
there? What was teaching like? At recess,
what games were played? And the list goes
on. Another student, living in a home built
about 1830, undertook research to develop
a renovation plan to restore a bedroom to
its original condition, including furnishings, bed clothes, and other accessories.
Eventually, she actually followed her
blueprint.
Localities can frequently provide
interesting ruins for analysis. One student,
an immigrant from Israel, where ancient
ruins abound, wanted to discover if there
were any old ruins about the local area. Her
investigation led her to the remnants of a
S o c i a l E d u c at i o n
408
recreational gravity railroad that snaked
around a mountainside overlooking the
city of Reading. Although not old by
Middle East standards, the study satisfied
her thirst for footprints of an age gone by.
Hobbies can be incorporated into
projects in numerous ways. In a summer
course, a student executed a photo essay by
comparing old canal photographs with current photographs of the same sites. A kayaker,
he researched through the primary sources
then spent time on the river with his camera.
Next, he created a fun visual presentation.
While he thoroughly enjoyed the project
(as did the class), he also applied excellent
historical research techniques. With the
popularity of “Antiques Roadshow,” many
students have delved into collectables of all
kinds and put them into their historic context. Clothing, foods, toys, tools, vehicles,
and other objects have all been used with
wonderful results.
Part of the student interest in local
historical connections derives from my
own work and experiences. I tell them
what I’m up to, what my current research
is, and why. I keep them informed of presentations I make at conferences. I ask them
for ideas and reactions. As much as I try
to insinuate myself into their work, I also
invite them to join in mine.
Enough projects now exist for students
to see that their predecessors have received
recognition for their endeavors. Every time
I teach U.S. history to 1877 I encourage student projects on the Underground Railroad
for inclusion on the “Follow the Drinking
Gourd” website that is a cooperative venture
with Montgomery College in Maryland.1
Another project, the Schuylkill Navigation
System (Canal) project was prototyped as
a student project but later evolved into a
successful grant proposal resulting in the
digitization of more than 1100 maps, charts,
diagrams, photographs, drawings and other
items dating from 1825. The outcome was
an eight CD-ROM set and an excellent
website.2 In the Schuylkill Navigation
System Project, students were paid a living
wage to participate. When these resources
are considered in class, I know that students
perceive a sense of pride on my part for these
student accomplishments.
There are copies of dozens of previ-
ous class projects in my office—some that
were successful (student names evident)
and some that were less than successful
(student names removed). I make these
available to students who still need to
gauge the nature of quality. The projects
are obvious to anyone who enters my office
(best described as a mangled mess of documents, photographs, maps, and artifacts). In
discussions with students, however, I can
usually find a primary source related to
their topic in a few seconds. The primary
source pump, in effect, has been primed.
Off they go to find their own and fashion a
project to their liking.
Grading projects can sometimes be
a challenge. Students receive a generic
grading form with their project packet.
The form, in a sense a rubric, assists with
quality criteria. Sometimes, however, creative projects demand creative grading. For
example, two students combined resources
and researched a local railroad station at the
National Archives using Record Group 134,
Interstate Commerce Commission railway
evaluation records.3 These records provide
extraordinary detail about all interstate
railroads and communities that existed
wherever the tracks went. A small local
historical society recently acquired the
station and was preparing for its restoration.
The students, one a carpenter and the other
a mason, thought that their research could
contribute to the restoration project. It did.
They wrote a traditional paper but also did
a presentation—to the board of directors
for the historical society. The research was
outstanding, the paper adequate, and the
presentation superb.
At the National Archives there is an
inscription that reads “Past is Prologue.”
The past offers an almost inexhaustible
array of research possibilities for students
and suggests to them that indeed it is a
prologue. As a record of human endeavor,
the past can challenge, entertain, revile,
provoke, inspire, awe, disgust, and more
through the exploration of all manners of
human behavior. It is the very nature of
history itself that energizes students in the
development of their projects.
That fine collection of projects is still
awaiting my attention. If “Past is Prologue”
then I’m due for a treat right about now.
Notes
1. Follow the Drinking Gourd: The Underground
Railroad Project www.racc.edu/Faculty/lawlor/ugrr_prj/
ugrr_main.htm
2. John M. Lawlor, Jr., “The Schuylkill Navigation System
Project at Reading Area Community College:
Preservation and Dissemination of an Important
Collection of Transportation Documents,” Journal of
the American Association for History and Computing
5, no. 2 (2002). Schuylkill Navigation Maps website:
www.racc.edu/library/canal/History/history.html.
3. For a discussion on the value of the Interstate Commerce
Commission Bureau of Valuation records, see: David
Pfeiffer, ”Researching Railroad Records at NARA,” in
The Record: News from the National Archives and
Records Administration. National Archives: Washington,
D.C., 1996, 27-28. For a detailed analysis of P&RR
holdings in Reading, Pa., in 1917, see: Russell Chadwick
and John M. Lawlor, Jr., “The Wealth of the Philadelphia
Novemb e r/D e c emb e r 2 0 03
409
and Reading Railway Company: The Interstate
Commerce Commission Valuation of 1917,” Reading
Company Historical and Technical Society, 1997.
John M. Lawlor, Jr., is a professor of history
at Reading Area Community College in Reading,
Pennsylvania. A past participant in the National
Archives’ “Going to the Source” and “Primarily Teaching” workshops, he was a contributing author to the
National Archives online Constitution Community
project within NARA’s Digital Classroom. In addition to history, he coordinates the implementation of
a U.S. Department of Education Preparing Tomorrows’ Teachers to Use Technology grant for Assistive
Technology and Universal Curriculum Design. He
lives in Womelsdorf, Pa.